Guilty as charged, ruled judge Stuart Wilson when he convicted Ntuthuko Shoba with the murder of Tshegofatso Pule at the Johannesburg High Court on Friday, triggering scenes of jubilation among Pule’s family and supporters who had gathered inside and outside the court building.
Pule was brutally murdered in Noordgesig in Soweto in June 2020. Her body was later found hanging from a tree in Roodepoort.
At the time of her death, Pule was heavily pregnant with Shoba’s child, and Shoba had consistently refused being the mastermind behind the murder of his “girlfriend”
Instead, he put the blame on Muzikayise Malephane, the triggerman, who is already serving a 20-year jail term for the gruesome murder of Pule.
Pule was last seen on a CCTV footage at Shoba’s place on June 4 2020. The footage, played in court, showed Pule leaving Shoba’s residence in a silver-grey Jeep that was driven by Malephane.
Malephane testified that Shoba, a former Johannesburg Stock Exchange analyst, ordered him to kill his then-girlfriend for R70 000. According to Malephane, Shoba said Pule’s pregnancy would cause trouble in his marriage, hence he ordered the hit.
Malephane also testified that they had known each other for over 10 years, to which Shoba objected. Shoba was charged with murder, an alternative charge of conspiracy to commit murder, and defeating the ends of justice
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